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A thermal-based acoustic vector sensor consisting of three heated wires can detect acoustic particle velocity instead of pressure. This paper proposes an analytical model for calculating the temperature distribution and acoustic-caused temperature perturbation of the sensor with a three-hot-wire configuration. In this model, the nonlinear effect caused by non-uniform thermal conductivity is considered. The nonlinear effects will not only affect the temperature of the three hot wires, but also the frequency response of the sensor. Based on the stationary temperature distribution calculated by the nonlinear model, we correct the heat diffusion coefficient in the acoustic perturbation model. The nonlinear stationary model and the corrected perturbation model are found to be in good agreement with the numerical results. Furthermore, we design a chip to measure the temperature distribution of the three heated wires and compare the sensitivity of the sensor with the corrected model. The experimental results can verify the proposed model. This study provides a theoretical basis for sensor performance optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]